With the Golden State Warriors appearing vulnerable next season (no matter how free agency goes for them), many believe the Western Conference race will be as wide open as it has been in years. Will MVP finalists Paul George, left, or James Harden lead one of their teams to the NBA Finals or will free agency signings lead to the creation of a new super team? (AP Photo/Kyle Phillips)

SANTA MONICA — After a half-decade of Warriors dominance, what will the West look like?

Daryl Morey has a suggestion: Keep an eye on his Rockets.

The Houston general manager has heard rumblings about his stars James Harden and Chris Paul not getting along and spent the better part of the month trying to quash the rumors. He’s dealt with the missteps of a new owner who has dragged a contract dispute with his head coach into the public light. Still, he wants people to remember that the Rockets twice took Golden State to at least six games, and often looked like the best Western threat to the Warriors’ dominance – why wouldn’t they ascend next season?

“It’s been the strangest part of my career with the media,” he said. “There have been times we deserve terrible coverage. It’s not now. The discussion should be we are favorites next year and let people beat that up.”

While a highly consequential free agency period begins on Sunday, the NBA is already beginning to size up what next season looks like. In the Western Conference, that’s a surprisingly complex question: Most of the contenders, to this point, have obvious flaws of one kind or another, and next year’s potential is mostly in the eye of the beholder.

Several Western officials and players questioned about the future of the West at the NBA Awards Show on Monday night foresee a much more “wide-open” conference next season. Among those who will compete to succeed the injury-plagued Warriors, the Rockets, the Nuggets, the Trail Blazers, the Jazz and a few others stand out, as well as whatever foundation the Lakers assemble around All-Stars LeBron James and Anthony Davis. But few – outside of Morey – are willing to take a stab at who might rise above.

Outside of the Lakers, one of the biggest offseason moves so far has been Utah’s trade for Memphis point guard Mike Conley, who they hope will address offensive shortcomings that have bounced them out of the postseason the past two years. Conley already has expressed enthusiasm with his new teammates – “I’m so glad I don’t have to play against Rudy (Gobert) or Donovan (Mitchell) again” – but didn’t want to speculate on who might stand out.

“I can’t tell you favorites,” he said. “I can tell you we’re going to be very good and our goal is to win a championship.”

While teams certainly will be looking to add players, stability might be a core indicator for others as to which teams might stand out. The Denver Nuggets, for example, have most of their talent under contract: Paul Millsap is the only key contributor who might be a free agent, and he still has a team option. Though capped out, Oklahoma City is also expected to retain a good portion of its starting group, and if Paul George and Russell Westbrook get healthy, they could be considered a threat despite consecutive first-round playoff exits.

Other teams are getting more uprooted: Portland, for example, will see key rotation players Al Farouq-Aminu, Seth Curry and Rodney Hood hit the market. While the Clippers hope to hit it big in free agency, many of the veterans who guided them in a six-game series against the Warriors might land elsewhere, highlighted by point guard Patrick Beverley.

That’s another argument for the Rockets, Morey said: “Most teams are scrambling to keep their starting unit together. We got ours next year.”

The X-factor is free agency: Last summer, the NBA thought James coming West might rock the playoff picture. Even though that didn’t come to pass, a number of the East’s top players – Kawhi Leonard, Kyrie Irving, Kemba Walker, Jimmy Butler, Al Horford – are about to hit the market, and there’s a threat that even more stars could switch conferences.

The pairing of James and Davis also has captured attention, though many Western competitors didn’t wish to comment much about it.

“I think they’re doing everything they can to build the most competitive team possible for the next few years,” Jazz center Rudy Gobert said. “Not much else to say about it.”

There are always rising and falling teams as well, and besides the Lakers, other squads on the cusp hope to punch their way into the playoffs next year. Dallas Mavericks wing Luka Doncic looked happy winning his Rookie of the Year award on Monday night, but before the ceremony, he expressed that he thought his team had “a great chance” of signing a big free agent.

“I’m excited for next year, trying to get into the playoffs,” he said. “There’s a lot of amazing free agents, so we’ll see.”

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